Seahawks aim for 20-win mark tonight

The UNCW men's basketball team will aim for win No. 20 Thursday night when it hits the road to face James Madison. (Source: UNCW)

WILMINGTON, NC (WECT) -

The UNCW men's basketball team will aim for win No. 20 Thursday night when it hits the road to face James Madison.

The game tips off at 7 p.m. at the JMU Convocation Center.

With a victory, the Seahawks (19-2, 8-0 CAA) would hit the 20-win mark in consecutive years for the first time since the 2001-02 and 2002-03 seasons.

UNCW is riding an eight-game win streak and has won 16 of its last 17 while the Dukes (6-15, 4-4) have lost three of their last four.

"The CAA is very challenging and we have two tough games this week," said Seahawk coach Kevin Keatts, whose team plays William & Mary on the road Saturday. "James Madison has experience - they have six or seven seniors and some juniors play. They have a very good program. It's unfair to look at their record because when you're a new coach with a new system, sometimes it works early and sometimes it doesn't. They have better chemistry now and are playing very good basketball.

"James Madison is one of the biggest teams we're going to face. They're bigger than us and more physical than us. They start two traditional posts and sometimes that causes problems for us."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

UNCW

Devontae Cacok set a new school and CAA record with 24 rebounds in an 87-74 victory over Drexel last Saturday. The sophomore forward easily leads the team in rebounding (10.4 rpg) and field goal percentage (80.3 percent).

JAMES MADISON

High Point native Jackson Kent leads the Dukes with scoring with 13.6 points per game. The senior guard scored a career-high 30 against Drexel on Dec. 31, 2016.

NOTES

UNCW leads the all-time series 37-33 and has won the last four meetings.

The Seahawks ranked 11th in the nation among 351 Division I teams with an average of 86.3 points per game.